Gurgoyle, President of the Musical Banks of the province, began to issue
from the robing-room, and move towards the middle of the apse. The
President was sumptuously dressed, but he wore no mitre, nor anything to
suggest an English or European Bishop. The Vice-President, Head Manager,
Vice-Manager, and some Cashiers of the Bank, now ranged themselves on
either side of him, and formed an impressive group as they stood,
gorgeously arrayed, at the top of the steps leading from the apse to the
nave. Here they waited till the singers left off singing.
When the litany, or hymn, or whatever it should be called, was over, the
Head Manager left the President's side and came down to the lectern in
the nave, where he announced himself as about to read some passages from
the Sunchild's Sayings. Perhaps because it was the first day of the year
according to their new calendar, the reading began with the first
chapter, the whole of which was read. My father told me that he quite
well remembered having said the last verse, which he still held as true;
hardly a word of the rest was ever spoken by him, though he recognised
his own influence in almost all of it. The reader paused, with good
effect, for about five seconds between each paragraph, and read slowly
and very clearly. The chapter was as follows:-
These are the words of the Sunchild about God and man.
Pages:
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200